15th November, 2021 Current Affairs

NATIONAL
President Ram NathKovind promulgates two ordinances extending tenure of CBI and ED Directors for up to 5 years

• President Ram NathKovind promulgated two Ordinances to extend the tenure of Directors of probe agencies Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) up to five years. The Ordinances are, the Central Vigilance Commission (Amendment) Ordinance 2021 and the Delhi Special Police Establishment (Amendment) Ordinance 2021.   
• As per the ordinances, the Chiefs of the top agencies can be given extensions, every year for up to three years after they complete the two-year term. The ordinances said, no such extension will be granted after the completion of a period of five years in total including the period mentioned in the initial appointment.
• The present tenure of the Chiefs of the Central Agencies is two years.

The Nation celebrates birth anniversary of tribal freedom fighter BhagwanBirsa Munda as Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas

• The Nation celebrates the birth anniversary of tribal freedom fighter BhagwanBirsa Munda as Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas.
• All preparations for the inauguration of BhagwanBirsa Munda SmritiUdayanSahSwantantraSenaniSangrahalaya by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
• Spread across an area of 38 acres of land, the state of art BhagwanBirsa Munda SmritiUdayanSahSwantantraSenaniSangrahalaya in Ranchi is ready to reverberate with the celebrations of birth anniversary of BhagwanBirsa Munda to be celebrated as Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas across the nation.
• 25ft high statue of BhagwanBirsa Munda is the major attraction while 9 ft high statue of 13 other freedom fighters of tribal movement will also play an important role in preserving and promoting tribal culture and history.

INTERNATIONAL

UN climate talks in Scotland concludes with global agreement capping global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius

• UN climate talks in Scotland has concluded with a global agreement aimed at keeping alive hopes of capping global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius, and so maintain a realistic shot at saving the world from catastrophic climate change.
• Nations have accepted a compromise deal aimed at keeping a key global warming target alive, but it contained a last-minute change that watered-down crucial language about coal.
• Alok Sharma, the conference chairman, banged down his gavel to signal that there were no decisive objections from the almost 200 national delegations present in Glasgow, ranging from coal- and gas-fuelled superpowers to oil producers and Pacific islands being swallowed by the rise in sea levels.
• United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement that our fragile planet is hanging by a thread. The Glasgow Climate Pact is the first-ever climate deal to explicitly plan to reduce coal, the worst fossil fuel for greenhouse gases.
• The issue of subsidies for oil, gas and coal has become a major sticking point at the summit, where negotiators have already missed a Friday deadline to strike an agreement aimed at keeping alive a goal to limit global warming to 1.5C.

Five Integrated Check Posts to be set up on India Bangladesh border

• Five new Integrated Check Posts (ICPs) will be set up on the India-Bangladesh border in West Bengal to ensure better connectivity and security. The decision was taken during the high-level meeting of the Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla with senior officials of West Bengal government.
• In total 7 ICPs will be set up in West Bengal which will strengthen border security and boost trade with India’s neighbouring countries. These include 5 ICPs on the Indo-Bangladesh border and one ICP each on borders with Nepal and Bhutan.
• The five ICPs on the Indo-Bangladesh borders will be set up atChangrabandha in Cooch Behar, Phulbari in Jalpaiguri, Hilli in South Dinajpur, Mahadipur in Malda and Gojadanga in North 24-Parganas. One ICP will be set up at Panitanki in Darjeeling district bordering Nepal and another at Jaigaon in Alipurduar bordering Bhutan.
• The construction work of the ICPs at Hilli and Chandrabandha will be taken up at the earliest as land-related issues have been settled in West Bengal. The survey work for the construction of other 3 ICPs on the Indo-Bangladesh border will begin soon.

Indian Air Force contingent to take part in biennial Dubai Air Show

• The Indian Air Force (IAF) contingent will take part in the biennial Dubai Air Show to be held at the Al Maktoum International Airport from tomorrow and it will continue up to 18th of this month.
• The IAF has been invited by the Government of UAE to participate with the Sarang and Suryakiran Aerobatics Teams.
• These teams will be performing along with some of the best aerobatics and display teams in the world, including the Saudi Hawks, Russian Knights and the UAE’s Al Fursan.
•  In addition, the IAF’s Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas will be part of the aerobatics and static displays during the show. The Dubai Air Show will be the first occasion for the Suryakirans and the Tejasto show off their swashbuckling aerial manoeuvres. Besides aerobatics and other air shows various technical aspects of the aviation industry will also be discussed in the sideline of the programme.

Number of forcibly displaced person has exceeded 84 million globally this year: UN

• The UN refugee’s agency, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, UNHCR has said that the number of forcibly displaced person has exceeded 84 million globally this year.
• The reason for this displacement include violence, insecurity and the effects of climate change. The UNHCR's Mid-Year Trends report, covering the first six months of this year, revealed a surge from 82.4 million largely due to internal displacement. More people are fleeing due to multiple active conflicts around the world, especially in Africa. It also noted that COVID-19 border restrictions continue to limit asylum access in many locations.
• A lethal mix of conflict, COVID-19, poverty, food insecurity and the climate emergency has compounded the humanitarian plight of the displaced, most of whom are being hosted in developing regions.
• The international community is failing to prevent violence, persecution and human rights violations, which continue to drive people from their homes.
• The report said, flaring conflict and violence around the world during the first half of this year forced nearly 51 million people to flee within their own countries.
•  The Democratic Republic of the Congo witnessed 1.3 million displacements and Ethiopia, 1.2 million, the report detailed. Meanwhile, violence in Myanmar and Afghanistan also saw an increase in the number-driven to leave home.

Bulgaria to elect President and new parliament, third parliamentary election this year

• Bulgaria is heading for polls to elect a parliament and a president in a bid to break a months-long political deadlock.
• Two general elections held in April and July this year failed to elect the government as no party could garner the required percentage of votes needed to form the government. Today's polls will be the third attempt to elect 240 lawmakers.
• No party is expected to win an outright majority in parliamentary elections, opening the door to more difficult coalition talks in a deeply divided parliament.
• A member of both NATO and the European Union, Bulgaria has been plagued by rampant corruption since overthrowing communism more than three decades ago. It is the EU's poorest member and routinely comes in at the bottom of the bloc for perceptions of corruption and media freedom.

AWARDS

Bangladeshi film ‘No Ground Beneath the Feet’ selected for the international competition section of IFFI, Goa

• Bangladeshi film ‘PaayerTolay Mati Nai’ (No Ground Beneath the Feet) directed by Mohammad RabbyMridha has been included in the international competition section of the 52nd International Film Festival of India (IFFI) to be held at Goa between 20-28 November.
• ‘PaayerTolay Mati Nai’ is Bangladeshi director Mohammad RabbyMridha’s feature debut. It stars Mostafa Monwar, Priyam Archi and Dipanita Martin.
• The film narrates the life story of an ordinary man who walks through conflicts in his life involving work, family and morality.

SPORTS
ICC Men's T-20 Cricket World Cup: Australia lifts ICC T-20 World Cup trophy, beats New Zealand by 8 wickets

• Australia lifted their maiden T20 World Cup title as they defeated New Zealand in the final by 8 wickets at Dubai International stadium. Chasing a victory target of 173, Australia won the game with 7 balls to spare. They made 173 for the loss of 2 wickets.
• For Australia, Opener David Warner with 53 and Mitchell Marsh unbeaten 77 was the top scorer. For New Zealand, Trent Boult took 2 wickets in 4 overs.

• David Warner was declared Player of the series while Mitchell Marsh was declared Player of the Match.
• Earlier, Kane Williamson smashed a brilliant 85 in 48 balls as New Zealand managed to reach a total of 172 for 4 in the stipulated 20 overs.
• For Australia, Josh Hazlewood was the pick of the bowlers with 3 for 16 while Adam Zampareturned figures of 1 for 26.

• Initially, Australia won the toss, and skipper Aaron Finch elected to bowl. Both teams finished second in their groups behind table-toppers England and Pakistan.
• New Zealand edged England in the first semi-final at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi before Australia defeated an in-form Pakistan team in the second semi-final in Dubai.

India, Australia to open women’s cricket event at 2022 Commonwealth Games

• India will face Australia in the opening match when women's cricket makes its debut at the 2022 Commonwealth Games on July 29 next year. 
• The final will be played on August 7. Event organisers announced today that women's cricket is making its debut at the Commonwealth Games with the T20 format.
• Other highlights on the schedule include India against Pakistan on July 31.